with a quite significant change in driver line-up for 2013, i was wondering how many of you are/will switch alligence from certain team/Driver/combination. it may be due to

1. your favorite driver has gone to another team, so you'll support that team
2. your team has hired someone you don't like, so you'll quit supporting them
3. your favorite driver has switched to a rival team , so you'll quit supporting that driver but stay faithful to the team
4. The team lost your faith with many blunders
5. Lost interest in the sport in general with demise/departure/retirement of Driver/team
5. other reasons .... etc etc

i'll go first if i may, i started watching F1 since 2003 and immediately became a fan of Mclaren and Kimi raikkonen. i was trully sad when kimi went to Ferrari as i didn't (and still don't) like the team. so 2007 WDC was a bitter-sweet moment for me as i statyed true to Mclaren and half-heartily supported both lewis and kimi. but the charm of mclaren started fading away since 2009 for one reason or other and in 2012, i became a LotusF1 fan as kimi was there, but still in the corner of my heart, i had a soft-spot for Mclaren. but with the on track-off track sagas in Mclaren and Lewis leaving, i finally realized i've lost my support for that team. There is no charisma left. now i'm fully committed being a LotusF1 fan and perhaps MGP fan as well as i want to see a rising phoenix.

P.S i understand that driver/team support is a dynamic thing i.e it changes with time/age/taste. so do share your views if you're supporting any new drivers/teams and the reason for it.

Good luck Lewis, welcome Checo! Go Mclaren!
I don't understand people switching teams when driver leaves. Like somebody starts supporting Real instead of ManU after Ronaldo went there Only teams, some teams, keep there history, heritage, glory, something that fans can relate with. Drivers are only players, they come and go. You can have your favorit driver and it is ideal when he drives for your team (we'll miss lewis) but no one can be above.

Good luck Lewis, welcome Checo! Go Mclaren!I don't understand people switching teams when driver leaves. Like somebody starts supporting Real instead of ManU after Ronaldo went there Only teams, some teams, keep there history, heritage, glory, something that fans can relate with. Drivers are only players, they come and go. You can have your favorit driver and it is ideal when he drives for your team (we'll miss lewis) but no one can be above.

Yeah I undersand that, if my country have f1 driver probably 99% of people would support that driver but again for some "die hard" fan I think it's more natural to support team. Even among my friends, few of us that follow f1 for ages we all support teams but some "occasional" fans are more driver related. No offense

I don't really care about drivers in sportscar racing as the teams and manufacturers are ALWAYS more important, so my loyalties never really change. Corvette Racing forever, and Rebellion on the LMP side of things. Though it must be admitted that whoever is challenging Audi always gets my vote, I mean while I never really cared about Peugeot they were the ones I rooted for - same with Toyota now. So I guess it is changing loyalty there, purely because I don't really fancy Audi

oh and I've always HATED BMW everywhere they raced, strangely except at Nurburgring 24 hours when in 2010 and 2011 the two factory M3s (these are cars that I despise so much) were one of the only GT2 cars going against GT3s. Kinda weird I know

It's a little different with other kinds of racing as it is harder to create such connections with the brands. I guess I would''ve otherwise dropped my loyalty to KV Racing in IndyCar now that Barrichello has gone, but De Silvestro going there retains my interest towards the team

Yeah I undersand that, if my country have f1 driver probably 99% of people would support that driver but again for some "die hard" fan I think it's more natural to support team. Even among my friends, few of us that follow f1 for ages we all support teams but some "occasional" fans are more driver related. No offense

After 36+ years with F1 and I would not call myself an occasional fan. I do observe a human being, a driver, his victories, and disappointments. He is an adopted friend. Team is a business entity in background, soulless. This is not football where a team is performing in the front of your eyes. Driver however is, whereas team is merely playing a supporting role, and I don’t get excited over that.

I'm switching my allegiance from McLaren to Mercedes next year partly because of Lewis, but mainly because they're a shadow of the team I started supporting 25 years ago. Like Lewis, I may go back, but not yet.

with a quite significant change in driver line-up for 2013, i was wondering how many of you are/will switch alligence from certain team/Driver/combination. it may be due to

1. your favorite driver has gone to another team, so you'll support that team2. your team has hired someone you don't like, so you'll quit supporting them3. your favorite driver has switched to a rival team , so you'll quit supporting that driver but stay faithful to the team4. The team lost your faith with many blunders5. other reasons .... etc etc

i'll go first if i may, i started watching F1 since 2003 and immediately became a fan of Mclaren and Kimi raikkonen. i was trully sad when kimi went to Ferrari as i didn't (and still don't) like the team. so 2007 WDC was a bitter-sweet moment for me as i statyed true to Mclaren and half-heartily supported both lewis and kimi. but the charm of mclaren started fading away since 2009 for one reason or other and in 2012, i became a LotusF1 fan as kimi was there, but still in the corner of my heart, i had a soft-spot for Mclaren. but with the on track-off track sagas in Mclaren and Lewis leaving, i finally realized i've lost my support for that team. There is no charisma left. now i'm fully committed being a LotusF1 fan and perhaps MGP fan as well as i want to see a rising phoenix.

Err there isn't really that much of a driver change, you're focusing wayyy too much on Hamilton. PS I'm a big Vet tel supporter (in reply to your other post)

u know, u'r perhaps the only staunch vet supporter i've seen in this forum

I've been a supporter of Vettel since Turkey 2006, but I don't buy into this whole 'if he jumped off a cliff I'd follow him' thing. He's not invincible to his share of gaffes and dumb mistakes, on-track or off.

But this is off topic, so pardon me--I find myself supporting drivers more than teams, and none of my favourites are going anywhere next year, so the answer to the thread questions would be something resembling 'no'.

Err there isn't really that much of a driver change, you're focusing wayyy too much on Hamilton. PS I'm a big Vet tel supporter (in reply to your other post)

not really, it's not only about one driver when u consider schumi is retiring, kamui/heikki/petrov/senna may not be in the sport and Pedro/narain is definitely out of F1. but what i wanted to say is if the driver switches or retires then what will happen.

I've been a supporter of Vettel since Turkey 2006, but I don't buy into this whole 'if he jumped off a cliff I'd follow him' thing. He's not invincible to his share of gaffes and dumb mistakes, on-track or off.

But this is off topic, so pardon me--I find myself supporting drivers more than teams, and none of my favourites are going anywhere next year, so the answer to the thread questions would be something resembling 'no'.

Next year I will support Perez, Raikkonen, Pic, Bottas, Hamilton (providing he's the good Lewis and not the drama queen)
Team wise is a bit difficult. I know which teams I do and do not like, but that is always outweighed by the drivers they have. For example, I don't like McLaren, but I like Perez, so I will support him.
Drivers excluded, I would favour Williams.

Well, I started watching F1 when I was just a kid and Senna had just moved to the best team at the time, Williams ... Since then I support them, and even being sad that Bruno left the team, I will support them.

Started to support Ferrari too because of Fernando going there and this year I liked watching Lewis a lot, think I'll support him and Kimi too.

My favourite driver has retired now (Schumi)
I've supported him since late 1991/early 1992. well before his first ever win.

I don't see myself supporting any other driver, I will still watch ALL the sessions FP1,2,3, Q and Race as I'm a fanatical fan but I won't have support for any one driver anymore. although I will be cheering on any Merc DNF's next season. Nothing against Lewis or Nico, just still angry with Ross and the team.

After 36+ years with F1 and I would not call myself an occasional fan. I do observe a human being, a driver, his victories, and disappointments. He is an adopted friend. Team is a business entity in background, soulless. This is not football where a team is performing in the front of your eyes. Driver however is, whereas team is merely playing a supporting role, and I don’t get excited over that.

OK, sorry then; you beat me to it. I was then a fan of BMW team, could not warm up to then their drivers, and reverted my attention to Seb only when he replaced S. Speed. His approach to race lines was interesting, and rest is history, I was hooked. It was not initially clean racing at all, but one could feel his determination and detect potential. We see results of that trust today.

I don't know who to root for since Schumacher quit... both times. I never liked Mercedes so I never supported them. I was a long time Ferrari fan, but F1 lost a lot of its magic to me, starting with the weird qualy rules (1 lap) and continuing on with the V8, ugly cars, emphasis on 'show' with tires & DRS, pussy stewarding, no more real rain races (watch Spain '96 or Spa '98), strict design rules, no testing, car park tracks, etc.

So the 'fandom' is not as strong as it used to be. The F1 is moving away from fans with payTV etc, so I guess I'll return the favour.

I am a long time Ferrari fan, but F1 lost a lot of its magic to me, starting with the weird qualy rules (1 lap) and continuing on with the V8, ugly cars, emphasis on 'show' with tires & DRS, pussy stewarding, no more real rain races (watch Spain '96 or Spa '98), strict design rules, no testing, car park tracks, etc.

So the 'fandom' is not as strong as it used to be. The F1 is moving away from fans with payTV etc, so I guess I'll return the favour.

McLarens driver line up doesn't excite me next season, it will be the first time since I started watching in 98 that they haven't had a driver there i want to support, ill be hoping McLaren can win the WCC.

I have kind of supported Mercedes as its my favourite car brand but Schumacher and Rosberg don't really inspire me with there driving so i guess next season with Lewis there ill have added interest.

u know, u'r perhaps the only staunch vet supporter i've seen in this forum

I think there are quite a few - gillesthegenius, choyothe come to mind. Me too. I think lot of Kimi fans and Schumi fans are quite staunch Vettel supporters. This forum is not a representation of the fan-following of Vettel. Bernie swears he is the most charismatic world champion we have had for a long time, and he knows his numbers.

Will be supporting Hamilton at Mercedes next year but will retain a soft spot for Button at McLaren and Di Resta at Force India. Would also love Webber to give the title a real go next year.

After a trip to Mercedes Benz World this year to see their full range of cars and to allow my 14 year old son to drive an A Class Merc, I'm pretty impressed with their heritage and current range of cars and tbh it's more of a driver thing for me rather than the team anyway.

Yeah I undersand that, if my country have f1 driver probably 99% of people would support that driver but again for some "die hard" fan I think it's more natural to support team. Even among my friends, few of us that follow f1 for ages we all support teams but some "occasional" fans are more driver related. No offense

After 36+ years with F1 and I would not call myself an occasional fan. I do observe a human being, a driver, his victories, and disappointments. He is an adopted friend. Team is a business entity in background, soulless. This is not football where a team is performing in the front of your eyes. Driver however is, whereas team is merely playing a supporting role, and I don’t get excited over that.

Two fantastic posts from totally opposite points of view. I agree with both. Crisp and short. A real team fans never leaves the team for any driver. He accepts and tries to forgive it is a single mistake, at the most, and continues supporting it like his family or national team. A hardcore driver fans often finds the team soulless. Any team member can go to another team member, and the team is not based on your hometown something. So where is the soul, he wonders. But this comes from the difference in fandoms of team and driver. Very interesting to think about it.